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A Weblog Dedicated to the Discussion of the Christian Faith and 21st Century Life

A Weblog Dedicated to the Discussion of the Christian Faith and 21st Century Life___I do not seek to understand that I may believe, but I believe in order to understand. For this also I believe, –that unless I believed, I should not understand.-- St. Anselm of Canterbury (1033-1109)

Thursday, September 20, 2012

Did Jesus "Take the Plunge?"

There has been much ado this week over a fragment of an ancient Coptic text from the fourth or fifth century AD, that suggests Jesus was married. Of course, the sensationalists will be running amuck with this breaking story assuming and asserting some outlandish things. Fortunately, however, there are many sane and careful scholars who have and will be evaluating the evidence. John Byron has written two excellent posts on the subject (here and here), and Larry Hurtado has published one this morning.

I haven't commented on the matter myself since plenty of scholars better qualified than I have weighed in on Jesus' theoretical nuptials. I highly doubt that Jesus was married and I don't think we should draw hasty conclusions otherwise from a tiny papyrus fragment that dates three hundred or more years after Jesus. Nevertheless, the fragment is worth the time of scholarship in helping us to understand at least one ancient Christian community who apparently believed that Jesus did indeed have a spouse.